15 March marks the International Day to Combat Islamophobia — a United Nations-designated annual observance calling global attention to the rising tide of anti-Muslim prejudice and discrimination.

Across the world, and increasingly here in South Africa, Islamophobia is showing up in harmful rhetoric, in discriminatory practice, and in acts of hostility and violence that erode social cohesion and human dignity. This echoes the UN’s own findings: that Muslims continue to face institutional discrimination, socioeconomic exclusion, and targeted hate driven by misinformation and inflammatory narratives.

It never travels alone

Like every form of hate, Islamophobia does not exist in isolation. It intersects with racism, with prejudice and with broader social inequity, compounding the marginalisation of the communities it touches. That intersection is what makes it a matter for every sector of society, not only for those it targets.

Who profits from it

Islamophobia is being exploited by political, nationalist and extremist religious groups seeking to build power bases, to divert attention from corruption and human rights abuses, and to deflect accountability for socioeconomic failure.

More concerning still is that mainstream political parties in established democracies are now breeding this hate through social media. That manipulation deepens division, fuels mistrust, and distracts from the real problems facing our society and the generations that follow.

On this day SAMNET reaffirms the need for collective action — across communities, institutions and leadership — to counter every form of hate, uphold human rights, and strengthen a South Africa grounded in justice, equality and mutual respect.

Related

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Shared by the South African Muslim Network (SAMNET) in the interest of fighting prejudice, intolerance, hate and violence.